A simplified methd of evaluating the seismic performance of buildings

This paper presents a simplified method of evaluating the seismic performance of buildings. The proposed method is based on the transformation of a multiple degree of freedom (MDOF) system to an equivalent single degree of freedom (SDOF) system using a simple and intuitive process. The proposed method is intended for evaluating the seismic performance of the buildings at the intermediate stages in design, while a rigorous method would be applied to the final design. The performance of the method is evaluated using a series of buildings which are assumed to be located in Victoria in western Canada, and designed based on the upcoming version of the National Building Code of Canada which is due to be published in 2005. To resist lateral loads, some of these buildings contain reinforced concrete moment resisting frames, while others contain reinforced concrete shear walls. Each building model has been subjected to a set of site-specific seismic spectrum compatible ground motion records, and the response has been determined using the proposed method and the general method for MDOF systems. The results from the study indicate that the proposed method can serve as a useful tool for evaluation of seismic performance of buildings, and carrying out performance based design.